}}{{tnr}}'''Fred Clark''' (b. May 14, 1959) is a [[Democratic Party|Democratic]] member of the [[Wisconsin State Assembly]], representing the 42nd District since 2009 and currently serving as [[State Assembly Minority Caucus Vice Chair|Minority Caucus Vice Chair]].

{{tnr}}'''Fred Clark''' (b. May 14, 1959) is a [[Democratic Party|Democratic]] member of the [[Wisconsin State Assembly]], representing District 81. He was first elected to the chamber in 2008. He has served as [[State Assembly Minority Caucus Vice Chair|Minority Caucus Vice Chair]].

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Clark is the Owner/Forester/Contractor of Clark * [[Forestry Committee, Wisconsin State Assembly|Forestry Committee]], Incorporated. He previously worked as a service forester/consultant with the Wisconsin Department of * [[Natural Resources Committee, Wisconsin State Assembly|Natural Resources Committee]], and as a forest ecologist for the The Nature Conservancy.

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==Biography==

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Clark earned his bachelor's degree from Michigan State University in 1985 and his master's degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1992.

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He is a member of the Aldo Leopold Foundation, Forest Guild, National Wild Turkey Federation, Great Lakes Timber Professionals Association, and Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters.<ref>[http://votesmart.org/bio.php?can_id=108964 Project Vote Smart - Assemblyman Clark]</ref>

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Clark is the Owner/Forester/Contractor of Clark Forestry, Incorporated. He previously worked as a service forester/consultant with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and as a forest ecologist for The Nature Conservancy.<ref>[http://votesmart.org/bio.php?can_id=108964 Project Vote Smart - Assemblyman Clark]</ref>

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On his campaign site Clark listed a number of legislative priorities, including:<ref>[http://www.clarkforwisconsin.org/issues.html Clark for Wisconsin ''Issues'']</ref>

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==Committee assignments==

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===2013-2014===

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At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Clark served on the following committees:

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{{Committee Assignments

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|State =Wisconsin

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|year =2013

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|Chamber =State Assembly

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|Committee1 =Education

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|Committee2 =Environment and Forestry

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|Committee3 = Jobs, Economy and Mining

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|Committee4 = Natural Resources and Sporting Heritage

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|Committee5 =

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}}

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===2011-2012===

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During the 2011-2012 legislative session, Clark served on these committees:

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{{Committee Assignments

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|State =Wisconsin

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|year = 2011

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|Chamber =State Assembly

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|Committee1 =Education

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|Committee2 = Natural Resources

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|Committee3 = Rules

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|Committee4 =Rural Economic Development

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|Committee5 =Tourism, Recreation and State Properties

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|Collapse=Yes

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}}

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===2009-2010===

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During the 2009-2010 legislative session, Clark served on these committees:

For a full listing of sponsored legislation and details see the [http://nxt.legis.state.wi.us/nxt/gateway.dll?f=templates&fn=default.htm&d=indxauth&jd=A42 House site].

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===Campaign themes===

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====2012====

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website highlighted the following campaign themes:<ref>[http://www.clarkforwisconsin.org/issues.html Clark for Wisconsin ''Issues'']</ref>

*Campaign finance reform - "We continue to believe in the democratic principle of one person-one vote. Yet Wisconsin’s regulation of campaign financing is not up the task of protecting that promise."

*Campaign finance reform - "We continue to believe in the democratic principle of one person-one vote. Yet Wisconsin’s regulation of campaign financing is not up the task of protecting that promise."

*Affordable health care - "Since the federal government is failing to lead in one of the most pressing issues facing our country, Wisconsin must step up to ensure that every Wisconsin citizen has access to affordable, comprehensive health care."

*Affordable health care - "Since the federal government is failing to lead in one of the most pressing issues facing our country, Wisconsin must step up to ensure that every Wisconsin citizen has access to affordable, comprehensive health care."

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*Tax equity - "We need to reform business taxation in Wisconsin to ensure that everyone pays their fair share and that the burden of taxation is no longer falling unfairly on the backs of our property owners and middle class citizens."

*Tax equity - "We need to reform business taxation in Wisconsin to ensure that everyone pays their fair share and that the burden of taxation is no longer falling unfairly on the backs of our property owners and middle class citizens."

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==Committee assignments==

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==Elections==

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===2011-2012===

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===2012===

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In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Clark has been appointed to these committees:

Clark announced on April 21 that he would run against [[Republican]] [[Wisconsin State Senate|state Sen.]] [[Luther Olsen]] in a recall election.<ref>[http://www.fox11online.com/dpp/news/local/fox_cities/state-rep-fred-clark-to-challenge-sen-luther-olsen-in-recall ''FOX 11,'' "Clark to challenge Olsen in recall," April 22, 2011]</ref>

Clark announced on April 21 that he would run against [[Republican]] [[Wisconsin State Senate|state Sen.]] [[Luther Olsen]] in a recall election.<ref>[http://www.fox11online.com/dpp/news/local/fox_cities/state-rep-fred-clark-to-challenge-sen-luther-olsen-in-recall ''FOX 11,'' "Clark to challenge Olsen in recall," April 22, 2011]</ref>

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About 24,000 signatures were filed against Olsen on April 18, seeking his recall. On May 23 the [[Wisconsin Government Accountability Board]] rejected Olsen's challenges to the petition and certified 22,207 signatures, clearing the way for a recall election to be held July 12.<ref>[http://www.fox11online.com/dpp/news/wisconsin/government-accountability-board-debates-recalls-of-kapanke-olsen-hopper http://www.fox11online.com/dpp/news/wisconsin/government-accountability-board-debates-recalls-of-kapanke-olsen-hopper ''FOX 11,'' "GAB clears way for 3 GOP recall elections," May 23, 2011]</ref>

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About 24,000 signatures were filed against Olsen on April 18, seeking his recall. On May 23 the [[Wisconsin Government Accountability Board]] rejected Olsen's challenges to the petition and certified 22,207 signatures, clearing the way for a recall election to be held July 12.<ref>[http://www.fox11online.com/dpp/news/wisconsin/government-accountability-board-debates-recalls-of-kapanke-olsen-hopper ''FOX 11,'' "GAB clears way for 3 GOP recall elections," May 23, 2011]</ref>

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Clark said he opposed Olsen because of his support for [[Wisconsin Assembly Bill 11, the "Scott Walker Budget Repair Bill" (2011)|Gov. Scott Walker's Budget Repair Bill]]. Clark stated, "I had worked with Luther and respected him. I spoke to him and told him I hoped he'd try to find a compromise (but) at the end of the day he voted along with the rest of his colleagues. They voted without any debate and walked out. That was the night he stopped representing the people."<ref>[http://www.thenorthwestern.com/article/20110430/OSH0101/104300374/Baraboo-Rep-Clark-starts-stumping-recall-election-against-Sen-Olsen?odyssey=tab|topnews|img|FRONTPAGE ''The Northwestern,'' "Democrat Fred Clark says he is challenging Sen. Luther Olsen in recall election because Olsen "stopped representing the people"," April 29, 2011]</ref>

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Clark said he is opposing Olsen because of his support for [[Wisconsin Assembly Bill 11, the "Scott Walker Budget Repair Bill" (2011)|Gov. Scott Walker's Budget Repair Bill]]. Clark stated, "I had worked with Luther and respected him. I spoke to him and told him I hoped he'd try to find a compromise (but) at the end of the day he voted along with the rest of his colleagues. They voted without any debate and walked out. That was the night he stopped representing the people."<ref>[http://www.thenorthwestern.com/article/20110430/OSH0101/104300374/Baraboo-Rep-Clark-starts-stumping-recall-election-against-Sen-Olsen?odyssey=tab|topnews|img|FRONTPAGE ''The Northwestern,'' "Democrat Fred Clark says he is challenging Sen. Luther Olsen in recall election because Olsen "stopped representing the people"," April 29, 2011]</ref>

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In late May, Clark publicly challenged Olsen to at least three debates before the election. The Democratic Party released a statement on May 31 saying that Olsen ignored the calls. Olsen's campaign manager, Jeff Weigand, called the accusation "ridiculous," adding that they had not received any calls or emails from Clark asking for debates.<ref>[http://www.wiscnews.com/baraboonewsrepublic/news/local/article_f6714f4c-8c01-11e0-892a-001cc4c002e0.html ''Baraboo News Republic,'' "Clark, Olsen debate debate," June 1, 2011]</ref> On June 5, Olsen said he would be happy to debate his opponent, but as Clark had not yet filed nomination papers, it was premature to set up debates.<ref>[http://www.postcrescent.com/article/20110606/APC0101/306070020/No-date-set-Sen-Olsen-recall-debate-despite-looming-election ''Post Crescent,'' "No date set in recall debate between Republican State Senator Luther Olsen and Democratic opponent Fred Clark," June 6, 2011]</ref> Clark released a statement on July 11 calling out Olsen for his failure to respond to requests for debates.<ref>[http://wispolitics.com/index.iml?Article=241705 ''WisPolitics,'' "Clark Campaign: Time to plan debates," July 11, 2011]</ref>

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In late May, Clark publicly challenged Olsen to at least three debates before the election. The Democratic Party released a statement on May 31 saying that Olsen has ignored the calls. Olsen's campaign manager, Jeff Weigand, called the accusation "ridiculous," adding that they had not received any calls or emails from Clark asking for debates.<ref>[http://www.wiscnews.com/baraboonewsrepublic/news/local/article_f6714f4c-8c01-11e0-892a-001cc4c002e0.html ''Baraboo News Republic,'' "Clark, Olsen debate debate," June 1, 2011]</ref> On June 5, Olsen said he would be happy to debate his opponent, but as Clark had not yet filed nomination papers, it is premature to set up debates.<ref>[http://www.postcrescent.com/article/20110606/APC0101/306070020/No-date-set-Sen-Olsen-recall-debate-despite-looming-election ''Post Crescent,'' "No date set in recall debate between Republican State Senator Luther Olsen and Democratic opponent Fred Clark," June 6, 2011]</ref> Clark released a statement on July 11 calling out Olsen for his failure to respond to requests for debates.<ref>[http://wispolitics.com/index.iml?Article=241705 ''WisPolitics,'' "Clark Campaign: Time to plan debates," July 11, 2011]</ref>

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Clark and Olsen agreed to a series of debates taking place on three consecutive days from July 26-28, with a fourth being proposed. The first being sponsored by the Adams-Columbia Electric Cooperative had no audience participation, but the public could suggest questions beforehand. The second was put on by the Waupaca Area Chamber of Commerce, with the third sponsored by the [[League of Women Voters]] of the Ripon Area.<ref>[http://www.wiscnews.com/portagedailyregister/news/article_2c7b7d78-af62-11e0-b88d-001cc4c002e0.html ''Portage Daily Register,'' "Clark, Olsen plan debates," July 15, 2011]</ref>

[http://media.jsonline.com/documents/rol_church.pdf GOP officials] placed [[Rol Church]] on the ballot as a Democratic candidate, forcing a primary between Church and Clark, delaying the actual recall election by four weeks.<ref name="protest candidates">[http://www.jsonline.com/watchdog/noquarter/123202643.html ''Milwaukee Journal Sentinel,'' "Wisconsin GOP leaders encouraging colleagues to place fake Democrats on recall ballots," June 5, 2011]</ref>

[http://media.jsonline.com/documents/rol_church.pdf GOP officials] placed [[Rol Church]] on the ballot as a Democratic candidate, forcing a primary between Church and Clark, delaying the actual recall election by four weeks.<ref name="protest candidates">[http://www.jsonline.com/watchdog/noquarter/123202643.html ''Milwaukee Journal Sentinel,'' "Wisconsin GOP leaders encouraging colleagues to place fake Democrats on recall ballots," June 5, 2011]</ref>

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All three had filed nomination papers with a sufficient number of verified signatures.

All three had filed nomination papers with a sufficient number of verified signatures.

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====Debates====

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Clark and Olsen have agreed to a series of debates taking place on three consecutive days from July 26-28, with a fourth being proposed. The first is being sponsored by the Adams-Columbia Electric Cooperative, and will have no audience participation, but the public may suggest questions beforehand. The second will be put on by the Waupaca Area Chamber of Commerce, with the third sponsored by the [[League of Women Voters]] of the Ripon Area.<ref>[http://www.wiscnews.com/portagedailyregister/news/article_2c7b7d78-af62-11e0-b88d-001cc4c002e0.html ''Portage Daily Register,'' "Clark, Olsen plan debates," July 15, 2011]</ref>

On July 15, the state Democratic Party sent a formal letter to six television stations asking them to pull an ad paid for by Wisconsin Family Action which they say is "shameful" and "grossly mischaracterizes and purposely deceives the voters about Fred Clark and his strong commitment to his family."<ref>[http://wispolitics.com/index.iml?Article=242346 ''WisPolitics,'' "WisDems: Shady conservative hit group smears Fred Clark with blatantly misleading attack ad," July 18, 2011]</ref> The ad alleges that Clark stated his child support payments "weren't a huge priority."

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On July 15, the state Democratic Party sent a formal letter to six television stations asking them to pull an ad paid for by Wisconsin Family Action which they said was "shameful" and "grossly mischaracterizes and purposely deceives the voters about Fred Clark and his strong commitment to his family."<ref>[http://wispolitics.com/index.iml?Article=242346 ''WisPolitics,'' "WisDems: Shady conservative hit group smears Fred Clark with blatantly misleading attack ad," July 18, 2011]</ref> The ad alleges that Clark stated his child support payments "weren't a huge priority."

====Campaign contributions====

====Campaign contributions====

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:: ''See also: [[Wisconsin State Assembly elections, 2010]]''

:: ''See also: [[Wisconsin State Assembly elections, 2010]]''

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Clark was re-elected to [[Wisconsin State Assembly]] District 42. He defeated Republican [[Jack Cummings]] in the general election on [[State legislative elections, 2010|November 2, 2010]]. Clark was unopposed in the [[Primary election dates in 2010|September 14, 2010]] primary election.<ref>[http://gab.wi.gov/sites/default/files/result/primary_percentage_results_78075.pdf Official GAB primary results]</ref>

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Clark was re-elected to [[Wisconsin State Assembly]] District 42. He defeated Republican [[Jack Cummings]] in the general election on [[State legislative elections, 2010|November 2, 2010]]. Clark was unopposed in the [[Primary election dates in 2010|September 14, 2010]], primary election.<ref>[http://gab.wi.gov/sites/default/files/result/primary_percentage_results_78075.pdf Official GAB primary results]</ref>

According to records available as of May 18, 2011, Clark raised $89,303 during 2010. Listed below are the top five contributors.<ref>[http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?c=131491 2010 contributors to Fred Clark]</ref>

Biography

Clark earned his bachelor's degree from Michigan State University in 1985 and his master's degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1992.

Clark is the Owner/Forester/Contractor of Clark Forestry, Incorporated. He previously worked as a service forester/consultant with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and as a forest ecologist for The Nature Conservancy.[1]

Committee assignments

2013-2014

At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Clark served on the following committees:

Campaign themes

2012

Campaign finance reform - "We continue to believe in the democratic principle of one person-one vote. Yet Wisconsin’s regulation of campaign financing is not up the task of protecting that promise."

Affordable health care - "Since the federal government is failing to lead in one of the most pressing issues facing our country, Wisconsin must step up to ensure that every Wisconsin citizen has access to affordable, comprehensive health care."

Public education - "Wisconsin needs a complete reform of our primary school financing system. We need to fund schools using methods that will allow EVERY school district to meet our state’s own standards for adequacy in education."

Tax equity - "We need to reform business taxation in Wisconsin to ensure that everyone pays their fair share and that the burden of taxation is no longer falling unfairly on the backs of our property owners and middle class citizens."

About 24,000 signatures were filed against Olsen on April 18, seeking his recall. On May 23 the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board rejected Olsen's challenges to the petition and certified 22,207 signatures, clearing the way for a recall election to be held July 12.[5]

Clark said he opposed Olsen because of his support for Gov. Scott Walker's Budget Repair Bill. Clark stated, "I had worked with Luther and respected him. I spoke to him and told him I hoped he'd try to find a compromise (but) at the end of the day he voted along with the rest of his colleagues. They voted without any debate and walked out. That was the night he stopped representing the people."[6]

In late May, Clark publicly challenged Olsen to at least three debates before the election. The Democratic Party released a statement on May 31 saying that Olsen ignored the calls. Olsen's campaign manager, Jeff Weigand, called the accusation "ridiculous," adding that they had not received any calls or emails from Clark asking for debates.[7] On June 5, Olsen said he would be happy to debate his opponent, but as Clark had not yet filed nomination papers, it was premature to set up debates.[8] Clark released a statement on July 11 calling out Olsen for his failure to respond to requests for debates.[9]

Clark and Olsen agreed to a series of debates taking place on three consecutive days from July 26-28, with a fourth being proposed. The first being sponsored by the Adams-Columbia Electric Cooperative had no audience participation, but the public could suggest questions beforehand. The second was put on by the Waupaca Area Chamber of Commerce, with the third sponsored by the League of Women Voters of the Ripon Area.[10]

GOP officials placed Rol Church on the ballot as a Democratic candidate, forcing a primary between Church and Clark, delaying the actual recall election by four weeks.[11]

Robert Forseth had filed to run as a "placeholder" Democrat.
Following the news that all six "fake" Democrats had turned in their final paperwork to get on the ballot to the GAB, the Democratic Party of Wisconsin announced that it would not be running their placeholder candidates in the recalls as they are no longer necessary. Party Chair Mike Tate explained, "The goal of the placeholder candidacies was to create an insurance policy against further Republican attempts to exploit the recall election schedule through dirty tricks and cynical plots."[12]

All three had filed nomination papers with a sufficient number of verified signatures.

Ads relating to the campaign

Ad controversy

On July 15, the state Democratic Party sent a formal letter to six television stations asking them to pull an ad paid for by Wisconsin Family Action which they said was "shameful" and "grossly mischaracterizes and purposely deceives the voters about Fred Clark and his strong commitment to his family."[16] The ad alleges that Clark stated his child support payments "weren't a huge priority."

Campaign donors

Comprehensive donor information for Clark is available dating back to 2008. Based on available campaign finance records, Clark raised a total of $531,037 during that time period. This information was last updated on June 7, 2013.[20]